ALLEGATIONS that a surgeon performed an operation with a chisel because laser equipment was not available are being investigated by hospital bosses.

Blackley MP Graham Stringer reported the shocking claim during a parliamentary debate on health in the House of Commons.

Mr Stringer told MPs that the patient had been informed that laser equipment normally used to accurately remove tissue had been moved from North Manchester General Hospital to Oldham.

He said in the Commons: "A constituent came to my advice bureau and said that, as she was recovering from a gynaecological operation, the surgeon had said to her, 'I have had to hack about a bit because the laser that would normally have done the work accurately has been transferred to Oldham.' That is a cause for concern."

Mr Stringer told The Advertiser that the woman had said the surgeon used a chisel to carry out the procedure and that the patient may have to return for further treatment as a result.

The MP had written to the trust's chief executive for an explanation about the case but said he was still waiting to receive a reply.

He said: "I didn't say this in Parliament, but the woman told me the surgeon used a chisel. She told me the surgeon wasn't sure, because he had not had the precision of a laser, that he had got it all out.

"The surgeon told her she would have to stay on drugs and may have to go back to have another procedure to make sure all the bad tissue has been removed."

Mr Stringer said the incident was an example of the failure of the structure of the Pennine Acute Trust and used the parliamentary debate to call for the trust chairman Steven Price and chief executive Chris Appleby to step down.

He said: "I am still waiting for the chief executive from the Pennine trust to reply to me on that point, but this begins to look like a structural problem."

He referred to a critical report published last November after consultants and trade unionists passed a vote of no confidence in the management of the trust.

At the time of the publication the trust's medical director and human resources manager left.

Mr Stringer quoted from the report by Professor George Alberti and questioned whether the chairman should not have followed suit.

The MP told the Commons: "I draw the conclusion that even though it is not written inblack and white, Professor Alberti thought that the chairman should take the same decision as the medical director. I can think of no other way of interpreting that part of the report.

"When I talked to the trade unions and the medical staff I formed the view that they do not believe that it is possible for the trust to improve with the current chairman and chief executive in post.

"I have had no personal difficulties with the chairman or the chief executive of the trust, but I think that the report and the issues speak for themselves. I do not wish either of those people ill, but it is clear that they have failed in this case and need to move on."

At the time the Alberti report was published both the chairman and chief executive said that they accepted the 25 recommendations of the report but intended to stay on in their posts. A spokesman for the Pennine Acute Trust said that their position had not changed.

The spokesman confirmed that the chief executive had received a letter from Graham Stringer and that the complaint was being looked into and a reply was due to go out to the MP this week.

The spokesman said that a number of the steps recommended in the Alberti report had already been implemented.

These steps included:

Creating a medical advisory committee that met for the first time this week

Working with the trade unions on revised arrangements for consultation